National Republican., 1887-10-10

thnn this" And the scribe said TO him
.wcll, master. thou hast said the truth for
heart, and all The understanding, and ali the
soul, and all the strength Is more than whole
burnt offerings and sacrifices And when
unto him III Thou art not Scti far nom the king
dom of Cod SO a skeptic wos saved In one
interview. But few Christian people treat the
him with the gentle hand OF love, we are apt
to take him With the iron pincers of eccle.
You would not be so rough on that man II
you knew by what process he had lost his faltn
In Christianity have known men skeptcal
from the fact tnat they grew up in houses
the most awful day OF the week. They had
religion driven into them with trip hammer
They were surfeited with, prayer meetings
They were stuffed and ohoked with cate.
chikms. They were often told they were the
worst boys the parents ever, knew, because
they liked TO ride down hill better than to
read "Bunyan's Pilgrims Progress" When.
ever father and mother talked OF religion they
drew down the corners OF their mouth and
rolled up their eyes. II any one thing will
other that is It. If I had had such q father
and mother fear l should have been an in.
Others were tripped up of skeptioism from
being grievously wronged by some man who
protested to be q Christian. They had a part
ner In business who turned out to be tirst-
class seoundrel. though 9 professed Christian,
Twenty years ago they lost all faith by what
happened in an oil company which was
formed amid the petroleum excitement. The
was no sign Of oil produced but the president
the conpanywa Presbyterian elder, and
the treasurer was an Episcopal vestrymau, and
one director was Methodist class leader. and
the other directors prominent members
of Baptist and Congregational churches.
Circulars were gotten out telling what
pany. Innocent mon and women who had a
little money TO invest, and that little their all,
said II don't know anything about this com:
OF II that IL must be excellent, and taking
stock iu II mustbe almost as good az Joining the
church" SO they bought the stock, and per.
still, but after while they found that the
company had reorganized, and had different
president, and different treasurer. and diff
ferent directors. Other engagements or Ill
health had caused the former officers OF the
company, with many regrets, to resign. And
all that the subscribers Of that stock had to
show for their investment ives beautifully
ornamented certificate. Sometimes that man
looking over his old papers comes across that
certificate, aud 1t is so suggestive that he vows
dents, and trustees, ana directors Of that oil
company professed. or course their rejection
ofreligion on such grounds was unphilosophi.
the United States army desert every year,
and there are $4,000 court-martial trials
syeryyear. Isthat anything against the United
soldiers of Jesus Christ desert, is that anything
against the Christianity which they sworo 10
support and defend2 How do youjudge Of the
| Oh, you must have patience with those who
have been swindled by religious pretenders.
Live nthe presence OF others frank, honest,
earnest Christian life, that they may be at
| tracted to the same Savior upon whom your
Rcmember skeptcsm always has some
| reason, good or bad, for existing Gmthe's
irreligion started when the news came to
| Germany Of the earthquake at lisbon, Nov. /,
1775. That sixty thousand people should have
| perished IN that earthquake and In the after
rising OF the Tagus river so stirred his sympa-
thies that he threw up his belief in the goodness
| OF God.
| natural persistence in asking the reason why.
| They have been fearfully stabbed OF the inter,
rogation point. There are 80 many things they
cannot get explained. They cannot understand
the Trinity or how God eau be sovereign and
yet man free agent. Neither. can I. They
say: ~ don't understand why a good God
Neither do j. You say: "Why was that child
started in life with such disadvantages, while
others have all physical and mental equip.
Easter mornins and say rRat doctrine Of
the resurrection confounded me-" SO II is TO
me mystery beyound unravelment under
the dark. / know them all. have travelled
with burning feet that blistered way. The
first word that children learn to utter Is gen
rst w6rS SsPf ever or uttered a%s Was dwhy
know what It Is to have hundred midnights
pour their darkness into one hour, SUCH men
your back upon a adrowning man when you
have the rope with which to pull him ashore
and let that woman in the third story of a
ladder with which to help her out and help
her down, rather than turn your back scoti.
ipRly on a skeptic whose soul is III more peril
than the bodies of those other endangered ones
possibly can be. Oh, skeptioism Ia adark land.
There are men IN this house who would give O
thousand worlds If they possessed them
their fathers and mothers, and 1t is our place
to help them, and we may help them never
through their heads, but always through their
Jesus, will be nightly affected, far more SO
than those who never examined the evidences
of Christianity. Thomus Chalmers was once a
ton a skeptic, Curistmas Evans skeptic. But
when once with strong hand they took hold of
the chariot of the Gospel: they rolled 1t on
men and women to-day, / throw out no scott.
the good old days; when at their
down to sleep" and by those days and nights
OF scarlet fever IN which she watched you,
giving you the medicine at Just the right time,
and turning your pillow when 1t was hot, and
with hands that many years ago turned to dust
Eoothed away your pain, and with voice that
you will never hear again, unless you join her
for you would feel better by-and-by, aud by
that dying couch where she looked 50 pale and
talked go slowly, catching her breath between
coming over your soul; by all that, / beg you
to come back aud take the same religion. i
was good enough for her Il is good enough
iplead by all the wounds, and tears, ana blood
and ,groans and agonies. and death throes o.
the Son q God, who approaches you this mo,
with torn brow ndd hand ad
unto Me, all ye who are weary and
heavy, laden, and, will give you rest.
,oncSed oScnpIed BY those Who are asras
in their habits. Ali northern nations. ike
those Of North America and England and
devastated BY alcoholism, They take the fire
to keep up the warmth. In southern countries
) like Arabia and Spain, the blood is so they are
TO dIk sr qaab qnSbr The ssss naT
water tinged with. vinegar, but under oui
northern climate the temptation to heating
stimplants is most mighty, and millions sue.
church drops HIM, the social circle drops him
good influence drops him. we all drop him. O
all the men who get off track but few ever get
on again. Near my summer residence there Il
a life SAYING station on the beach. There are al
the ropesand rockets, the boats, the machinery
for getting people of shipwrecks Summer be
fore last saw there fifteen or twenty men who
were break fasting. after having just escaped
with their lives and nothing more. Up and
down our coasts are built these useful strpc
that If they are driven into the breakers there
Will be apt from shore to come a rescue. The
churches Of God ought 10 be SO many life-savini
stations, not 80 much to help those wht
are In smooth waters but those who have beer
shipwrecked. Come, let us run out the life
boats And who will mau them2 We do not
preach enough to such men, we have no
enough faith in their release. Alas! If wher
they come TO hear MS we are laborously tryinI
to show the difference between SHblapsariau
ism and suprAlapEarianism while they have
thousand vipers OF remorse and despair collins
around and biting their immor al spiritsl Thl
church is not chiefly for goodish sort o
men whose proclivities are all right anC
who could get TO heaven praying ant
singing In their own homes.